Good Old Days
by Anna Fay
Summary: Heads of Houses helping out their own teams had always been as much of a tradition as start of term feasts and seventh years daring each other to spend their last night in the Forbidden Forest. But the way Snape was doing it brought things to a new level.
1. Chapter 1

Even their own Head of House saw what the new Potions Master was playing at. But instead of defending them and making him reschedule their detention, she took five points from Gryffindor on behalf of each of them, probably for giving Snape a chance to keep them from Quidditch practice before such an important match.

But how on earth could they have suspected this?

Heads of Houses helping out their own teams had always been as much of a tradition as start of term feasts and seventh years daring each other to spend their last night in the Forbidden Forest. But the way Snape was doing it brought things to a new level.

Their Keeper, Vincent, broke that potion bottle last Monday. Lupita, their Seeker, handed in her essay half an inch shorter the Friday before. Stockmore, who only had been their Beater for two weeks, had a fight with Slytherin's Prefect back in October, and had been in detentions on every Tuesday since, but now suddenly he joined them on Wednesday, because this way Snape could watch half the Gryffindor Quidditch Team chop his bloody Pungous Onions until they cried their eyes out, instead of practicing for their upcoming match against Slytherin.

"At least _you_ should have tried to keep your head down," whispered Lupita, wiping her tears and most of her mascara on her sleeve.

"I was only 'alf a day late! I was goin' to take it back right after lunch," hissed Scabior indignantly. "And 'e must 'ave been very desperate to find fault with us if 'e combed through the library register," he croaked as he started to feel the smell of the Onions get in his mouth and attack his throat, making him cough so hard he dropped his knife and almost knocked over his chopping board too.

"Have I not warned you that silence is of utmost importance when handling Pungous Onions?" asked Snape, not even looking up from the papers he was grading at the other end of the room.

"Yes, you 'ave, you son of a bat," mumbled Scabior, picking up his knife and pulling the neck of his shirt up above his nose to cover the lower part of his face. It didn't give much protection, but he was willing to try anything to keep the vapours away.

"We won't get out of here before midnight," groaned Stockmore with a very wet sniff, and he was probably right. They've been working for two hours, and the pile in front of them hardly shrank.

"You will," whispered the pretty little fifth year from Ravenclaw in front of them, reaching behind her and taking a few Onions from Scabior's tray. "And you'll beat their sorry asses on Saturday," she added, smiling at him over her shoulder, before turning away and cutting off the green parts with a single swish of her knife, while her friend, a girl from Hufflepuff, tossed a handful of neatly chopped Onions on their table in return for the stolen ones.

"Then you ladies are welcome to the party afterwards," grinned Scabior, incorporating the gift to their own pile, then readjusting his shirt and his Captain's badge on it. No matter how many nasty tricks Snape had up his billowy sleeve, the whole school wanted them to win.

* * *

 _The best thing about characters we don't know much of is that I can play with their ages until they end up having their seventh year in Hogwarts with a newly appointed Severus Snape as their teacher. :)_

 _(And yes, that's Tamora.)_

 _Thank you for reading, please, review!  
And thank you, DragonMoonX for your help. :)  
_


	2. Chapter 2

The ball of the seventh years ended, as always, at eleven minutes before midnight, and by half past, all the Gryffindors who wished to enter the game were hiding behind the last corner before the stairs that lead to the Entrance Hall, listening intently as the footsteps of the caretaker grew fainter and fainter in the distance.

"All right, people, last chance to turn back," whispered Scabior with a grin, but he knew none of his friends would let him down. They never let him down. They had been with him when he smuggled Bogomil, the five-legged fire crab out from Care of Magical Creatures, and when he climbed the fences and tried to get a better look at the Shrieking Shack. And even when they all ended up in the hospital wing for a week, and in detention for a month for trying to give themselves a permanent red streak in their hair in memory of their ever-lasting Gryffindor pride, but almost giving themselves some permanent brain damage too.

"After me, then!" he nodded, whipping out his wand and running down the stairs as quick as he could.

oOo

The ball of the seventh years ended, as always, at eleven minutes before midnight, and by half past, all Heads of Houses took their seats on the top of the Astronomy Tower.

"Congratulations, Filius," said Professor Sprout, revealing a tray with four smaller versions of the Hogwarts House Cup, filled with Professor Flitwick's favourite cherry syrup and soda on ice and decorated with Ravenclaw colours.

"Thank you, thank you," bowed Flitwick, raising his cup towards the other Heads before pushing one of the dainty little umbrellas aside so that he could take a long sip through the blue and bronze striped straw. "Ah, just what I needed," he smacked his lips contentedly.

"Just what we all needed," agreed Professor Sprout, adding just a dash of maraschino to Professor McGonagall's cup, then offering the bottle to their newest colleague. It was hard to tell if Professor Snape sat ramrod straight because that was the way his back was wired, or because he felt a little out of water amongst the people who had been his teachers just three years before. But after what looked like a moment of hesitation, he lifted his cup towards Professor Sprout, who poured him some with a kind smile.

"What a year," she sighed, as she topped up her own cup as well, wiping off the single drop that started creeping down the neck of the bottle with a finger. "What a year...!"

"Indeed," nodded Professor McGonagall.

Only eight months after the end of the War there was still little to be said about it. The joy they felt right after the fall of the Dark Lord had lasted only a few weeks, but the wounds all those years of fear left them with were still too fresh to be put into words.

"So..." Professor Flitwick cleared his throat, cutting into the awkward silence. "How many contestants do we have?" he asked, playing with one of the umbrellas in his drink so that he didn't have to meet his colleagues' eyes.

"Hufflepuff has three," Professor Sprout rushed to help him with lifting the mood. "I think it's a new record," she beamed.

"Yes, I think it is." Professor McGonagall adjusted her glasses. "Gryffindor has five," she announced, taking a sip from her cup. It was a new record too; never before had there been so few of her students taking the challenge.

"I should say Ravenclaw has three as well," added Professor Flitwick, "but the winning of the House Cup might have changed that."

"Yes, it tends to have that effect on them," chuckled Professor Sprout knowingly, before looking up at Professor Snape.

"Four," he nodded curtly. Maybe he really knew, maybe he was just bluffing, but only Professor McGonagall allowed herself a moment of suspiciously pursed lips before she let him get away with it and took a sip from her cup instead.

"Oh, here comes the first!" gasped Professor Flitwick, raising his binoculars in front of his eyes to get a better look at the dark figure running across the lawn towards the Forbidden Forest. "I think he is one of yours, Minerva," he added.

"Yes, he is," Professor McGonagall tapped the side of her glasses with her wand, making the lenses focus on the ground. The Scabior boy had been the first to jump into all sorts of troubles for the last seven years. And even though she hated to admit it, she felt somewhat relieved to know that it would be his last night in her charge.

* * *

 _The idea of some of the seventh years spening their final night seemed to be very popular, so I couldn't resist adding another drabble to this. Send me a review if you like it! :)_

 _And thanks DragonMoonX for the help, you are a true friend. :)_


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